Angels Are Real
Published:
February 19th, 2016
By:
Ashley Babbitt

Heroin.
It’s
all
over.
Addicts.
They’re
all
over.
It’s
no
longer
the
‘junkie
under
the
bridge.’
Heroin
does
not
discriminate.
Your
neighbor,
your
grandparents,
your
lawyer,
your
car
dealer,
the
folks
in
your
graduating
class
from
high
school,
your
doctor,
your
teacher,
your
friend,
your
quarterback
who
got
injured
and
prescribed
pain
killers,
your
parent,
your
child.
Anyone
can
fall
in
love
with
the
poison
that
will
kill
them
slowly.

Addiction
is
a
disease.
It
must
be
treated
as
such.
The
stigma
must
be
removed.
No
child
tells
their
parent
that
they
want
to
be
an
addict
when
they
grow
up.

The
fight
is
hard.
And
the
struggle
is
so
incredibly
real.
The
addiction
takes
hold.
A
person
who
may
have
once
been
your
best
friend
may
now
appear
to
be
a
complete
stranger.
Families
become
torn
apart.

If
obtaining
the
heroin
required
so
that
the
addict
does
not
get
sick
becomes
difficult,
the
addict
may
turn
to
theft.
Theft
from
family,
friends,
strangers,
businesses.

As
many
know,
the
heroin
epidemic
here
is
not
a
localized
issue.
It’s
nationwide,
and
the
fault
is
not
only
on
the
addict
for
having
once
made
the
choice
to
try
the
heroin.
Fault
lies
on
the
doctors
overprescribing
opiates.
It
lies
on
the
lack
of
treatment
available.
It
lies
on
the
fact
that
addicts
are
still
treated
like
the
‘junkie
under
the
bridge’
rather
than
the
middle-aged
man
who
needs
help.
Fault
lies
on
the
justice
system
for
punishing
addicts
rather
than
offering
treatment.
There
are
many
to
blame.

There
now
is
a
local
police
department
willing
to
help.
Willing
to
assist
those
who
love
heroin
more
than
they
love
their
parents,
pets,
and
professions.
Willing
to
throw
judgement
to
the
wayside
and
actually
do
something
in
this
county
for
once,
rather
than
merely
provide
lip
service.

The
Oxford
Police
Department
has
signed
on
to
the
Police
Assisted
Addiction
and
Recovery
Initiative
(PAARI),
the
program
developed
by
the
Gloucester,
Massachusetts
Police
Department.

PARRI
works
with
opioid
addicts
with
the
belief
that
the
disease
of
addiction
is
not
a
crime
of
addiction.

Departments
commit
to
encourage
opioid
drug
users
to
seek
recovery,
distribute
Narcan,
connect
addicts
with
treatment
programs
and
facilities,
and
provide
resources
to
other
police
departments
and
communities
that
want
to
do
more
to
fight
the
opioid
addiction
epidemic.

Oxford
Police
Chief
Richard
Nolan
weighed
in
on
the
issue
in
a
previous
interview
with
The
Evening
Sun.

“Statewide,
the
number
of
high
school
students
that
have
reported
using
heroin
has
doubled
and
Oxford
is
not
an
exception,”
said
Nolan.
“We've
seen
far
too
many
local
students
and
graduates
become
addicted
to
heroin
and
other
opioids
and
this
trend
is
only
increasing.”

Nolan
added,
“We’re
a
small
community,
but
we’re
far
from
immune
to
the
epidemic
that
has
struck
our
nation
and
our
student
population
is
certainly
of
special
concern.
According
to
studies,
more
than
90
percent
of
people
suffering
from
addiction
began
using
substances
before
their
18th
birthday
and
a
majority
of
heroin
users
report
first
abusing
prescription
medication.”

Nolan
said
something
I
wholeheartedly
agree
with:
The
stigma
that
continues
to
surround
addiction
is
part
of
the
reason
that
addiction
rates
have
continued
to
rise
at
an
unprecedented
rate.

I
believe
that
what
is
currently
in
place
with
regard
to
how
law
enforcement
deals
with
addiction
is
not
working.
Not
one
bit.

Nolan
said,
“While
we've
made
great
strides
in
other
areas
of
public
health,
drug
overdoses
have
risen
to
become
the
greatest
cause
of
accidental
death
in
the
United
States.
I’ve
been
in
law
enforcement
for
27
years
and
what
we're
doing
isn't
working.”

Sobriety
is
short-term,
recovery
is
long-term.

The
Oxford
Police
Department
is
about
to
begin
something
for
which
I
must
applaud
them.

On
Feb.
27,
2016,
a
training
will
take
place
at
the
OPD
for
anyone
interested
in
volunteering
for
Oxford’s
Road
to
Recovery
Program.

With
the
Road
to
Recovery
Program,
if
someone
walks
into
the
OPD
seeking
help
with
their
addiction,
they
will
be
greeted
by
a
team
of
professional
law
enforcement
officers
and
volunteers
who
will
support
them
in
every
step
of
the
way
in
their
road
to
recovery
and
in
locating
treatment.

“As
law
enforcement,
we
serve
to
protect
and
assist
one
and
all,
without
discrimination,”
said
Nolan
when
discussing
the
program.
“Throughout
history,
law
enforcement
has
served
to
provide
support
to
those
struggling
with
mental
health
issues,
those
who
have
become
victims
of
domestic
violence,
and
others
who
are
having
trouble
in
their
life
and
just
need
support.
We’re
there
for
them
and
there’s
no
reason
why
we,
as
law
enforcement,
should
not
reach
out
and
support
those
suffering
from
addiction.
Addiction
is
a
disease
not
treated
by
arrest,
but
by
a
foundation
of
community
support.”

Through
the
OPD’s
partnership
with
PAARI,
the
department
will
have
access
to
more
than
300
treatment
centers
across
the
country
who
provide
scholarships
for
those
seeking
treatment.
Since
November,
the
OPD
has
been
forming
partnerships
with
in-state
treatment
providers
to
ensure
that
the
department
is
able
to
support
those
suffering
with
addiction
before,
after,
and
throughout
treatment.

“When
you
walk
through
our
doors,
we’ll
guide
you
through
an
intake
process,
make
contact
with
treatment
providers,
and
assign
volunteers
to
stand
with
you
every
step
of
the
way.
We’ll
work
with
you
to
develop
a
plan
to
address
your
addiction
best
suited
to
you
and
we’ll
follow-up
with
you
before,
during,
and
after
treatment.
If
you
have
drugs
or
drug
paraphernalia
to
hand
in,
we’ll
take
them
into
custody
for
destruction.
We
will
not
judge
you,
we’re
here
to
help
you.
There
will
not
be
a
day
that
we
don’t
think
of
you
and
we
will
always
do
our
best
to
provide
continual
support
throughout
your
road
to
recovery,”
said
Nolan.

The
Road
to
Recovery
Program
is
seeking
‘Angel
Volunteers.’
If
you
are
interested
in
helping
to
make
our
home
a
better
place,
if
you
are
interested
in
embracing
the
fact
that
we
are
all
human,
if
you
believe
that
every
flower
has
the
right
to
bloom,
please
consider
attending
this
volunteer
training.

The
training
is
free.
‘Angel
Volunteers’
will
sit
with
a
person
who
comes
to
the
OPD
seeking
addiction
treatment
help.
Volunteers
will
help
fill
out
forms,
provide
comfort
and
at
times
may
also
ride
with
the
police
to
transport
a
person
to
treatment.

The
program
itself
is
slated
to
start
in
mid-March.

Once
the
program
is
underway,
any
Oxford
resident
will
be
able
to
seek
addiction
treatment
help
by
going
to
the
Oxford
Police
Station
and
not
fear
arrest.
Instead,
an
‘Angel
Volunteer’
will
be
called
to
sit
with
them
and
compassionate
police
officers
will
make
calls
to
find
a
treatment
center.

Volunteers
will
learn
about
the
intake
forms,
the
program
and
the
plans
for
the
program.
They
will
also
learn
how
to
interact
with
a
person
who
may
be
struggling
with
withdrawals
and
addiction.

Training
will
take
place
from
9
a.m.
until
1
p.m.,
Feb
27,
2016
at
50
South
Washington
Avenue,
Oxford,
NY.

Remember,
addiction
has
no
barriers.
No
boundaries.
It
could
be
your
mother,
brother,
the
soccer
mom
who
car
pools
your
child
to
school,
your
child’s
school
bus
driver,
your
12-year-old
daughter,
your
mailman,
the
person
you
see
at
the
bar
every
night
when
you
stop
by
for
your
nightly
(legal)
’couple
of
beers.’

Heroin
does
not
discriminate.
It
may
have
been
‘Under
the
Bridge’
where
the
Red
Hot
Chili
Peppers
first
drew
some
blood,
but
these
days
it
can
be
in
your
child’s
high
school
bathroom,
your
neighbor’s
basement,
in
the
car
while
the
retail
clerk
is
on
break.

Remember,
no
seven
year
old
tells
their
mommy
and
daddy
they
want
to
be
an
addict
when
they
grow
up.

Let’s
have
a
little
bit
of
compassion
and
understanding.
While
some
will
remain
in
love
with
heroin
forever
and
may
ultimately
die
in
love,
there
are
others
who
want
out
but
don’t
know
where
to
go.

This
is
where
the
Road
to
Recovery
program
comes
into
play.
And
it’s
now
when
I’ll
encourage
all
those
interested
in
volunteering
to
help
make
change
to
attend
the
training.

We
need
to
move
forward
from
just
talking.
Yes,
we
must
continue
the
conversation,
but
speeches
aren’t
enough
action.
I
applaud
all
those
who
are
making
this
program
possible.

Any
addict
reading
this,
I’m
not
only
your
hometown
daily’s
newspaper
editor.
I
went
to
college
for
substance
abuse
counseling,
and
I&#8200;have
two
non-judgemental
ears
ready
to
listen
and
two
eyes
ready
to
read.
Reach
out
if
you
need
to.

And
as
for
me,
I’ll
be
there
15
minutes
early,
ready
to
be
trained,
ready
to
help
anyone
who
wants
to
end
their
vicious
love
affair
with
heroin.